Candy Cane Lane movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Candy Cane Lane

This goofy holiday flick is now playing in select theaters and available on Amazon Studios.

RATING: PG

LENGTH: 1 hour 57 minutes

MOVIE REVIEW MOM GRADE: B

IN A NUTSHELL:

The story is about a man who is determined to win the neighborhood’s annual Christmas decorating contest. He makes a pact with an elf to help him win, but there unintended consequences of chaos.

The family-friendly movie was directed by Reginald Hudlin. Writing credits go to Kelly Younger.

THINGS I LIKED:

It’s great to see Eddie Murphy in something again. He’s great, of course. Giving way to the fun special effects, he plays a much more subdued character than we’ve seen him do before. When is he going to start aging?
Tracee Ellis Ross is fantastic in this. I loved her fun personality. Did you know she has been nominated for 58 awards and won 12, known mostly for her role in Black-ish (https://amzn.to/4a4ZMje ).
The adorable Madison Thomas has an appropriate name for a character in a holiday movie: The other children in the movie are named Nick and Joy.
I always get a kick out of Jillian Bell and thought she was perfect in this role. She’s a quirkly, likable villain.
The rest of the cast is great too, and includes Nick Offerman, Timothy Simons, Danielle Pinnock, Nancy Lenehan, Timothy Simons, and David Alan Grier as Santa!
There is so much humor, both visual and spoken. So many things made me laugh out loud.
I love the animated figurines in the old-timey houses. It seemed super old-fashioned Christmasy to me.
The special effects are really entertaining!
We’ve seen soooo many generic holiday movies over the years, so I loved that this story is unique and original.
This movie could have easily jumped into the horror genre if it had wanted to.
It made me laugh that USC was mentioned so many times in the movie. My brother is a USC law school grad!
That Matrix house. Ha ha
We get a musical cameo from Pentatonix. I love that group!
Keep watching during the final credits for another little scene, as well as some funny outtakes.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

There is a lot going on here. Sometimes, the script is too stuffed.
Even though I enjoyed the movie, it felt a little too long.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Some “light” profanity
Lots of destruction and mayhem.

THEMES:

Perfection
Competition
Family support
Neighborly kindness
Christmas
Money
Priorities
Christmas spirit
Sharing love and joy

FUNNY LINES:

“Nobody reads the fine print.” – Chris Carver (Eddie Murphy)
“I don’t let grades define me.” – Nick Carver (Thaddeus J. Mixson)
“No, it doesn’t feel magical; it feels terrifying.” – Carol Carver (Tracee Ellis Ross)
“I’m like a mad genius, ya’all.” – Nick Carver (Thaddeus J. Mixson)
“Let me introduce you to the elves. We got Cupcake, Twinkle, Dinky. We got Winky, Dinky, Binky, and Stinky…he not allowed inside.” – Santa (David Alan Grier)
“Now I know what Barbie feels like. Let’s punch it!” – female figurine
“Oprah said if I believe, I could do anything.” – female figurine
“Thugs need hugs.” – Holly Carver (Madison Thomas)

INTERESTING LINES:

“How nice is it to have some help from your family?” – Carol Carver (Tracee Ellis Ross)
“Look, bad things happen to good people, but if you have family and love, you’ll get through anything. And it’s always better to get through it together than on your own.” – Chris Carver (Eddie Murphy)
“Family. That’s the real gift, innit?” – Pip (Nick Offerman)